Cluster-Cluster Strong Lensing: Expectations and Detection Methods
Abstract
We calculate the all-sky number of galaxy clusters that are expected to be gravitationally lensed by foreground massive clusters. We describe the redshift and number distributions of clusters using a Press-Schechter analysis, and model the foreground lensing clusters as singular isothermal spheres. If Omegam=0.3 and OmegaLambda=0.7, we expect ~ 30 cluster-cluster strong lensing events that involve foreground X-ray luminous clusters with total mass greater than 7.5 x 1014 h-1 Msun, or X-ray luminosity Lx (2-10 keV) 8 x 1044 h-2 ergs s-1, and background clusters with total mass greater than 1014 h-1 Msun. The number expected in an open universe with Omegam = 0.3 is less than \~ 4. Because of uncertainty in sigma8, the root-mean-square density fluctuations in spheres of radius 8 h-1 Mpc, the exact number of such lensing events is uncertain by a factor of about 5. We examine methods to detect cluster-cluster lensing events based on optical, X-ray, and Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect observations.
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